Tens of thousands of animals converged onto Randall’s Island over Labor Day weekend to celebrate their love of dance music underneath the famed New York City skyline. This year, we experienced beautiful weather, as well as total downpours; the famed plush blanket of green grass, as well as mud puddles galore. No matter what though, we found the beauty in it all and gathered with new friends and old to dance all day and night. We even saw a select few brushing up on their puddle jumping skills!

Each year this festival just gets better and better. One change this year that we greatly enjoyed was the demise of “EZOO Bucks”. The festival is cashless, which is something we always loved (less things to stuff into your pockets!), but the former island currency was just plain confusing. This year everything was in dollar amounts so it made adding money onto your bracelet very simple because you were able to guesstimate a lot better for how much you thought you would spend at the festival. We’re here for the music, not for the math games!

We loved the stages this year and how they really incorporated New York City into the designs. The hospitality was top notch – always full of friendly faces happy to help. EZoo has some of the best choices we’ve seen for food vendors and this year did not disappoint at all. Although we admittedly did not venture farther than our beloved Big Mozz, there truly was something for everybody to enjoy. And the talent? We heard repeatedly from festival-goers throughout the three days that this was simply the best lineup the festival had ever had. And we just have to agree with everyone on that!

Top 5 Sets

Armin Van Buuren

No surprise here – once again this man stole the show! Armin seems to have completely perfected the art of grabbing his audience and telling us all a beautiful story through his sets. We came ready for A State of Trance and Armin gave us that and so much more, even giving nod of appreciation to those New York fans who had followed him since his career starts in the city that never sleeps.

Deadmau5 & Eric Prydz

Two legends in a b2b set to close out this festival…all we had to say was “hit me with those laser beams!” The visuals were spot on and the bass was heavy and this set was jam-packed with 90 minutes of pure techno heaven.

Above & Beyond

What’s more beautiful than experiencing an Above & Beyond set? An Above & Beyond set in the rain. The visuals amidst the rain created a glitter-like effect above the loyal crowd who braved the cold and rain to experience this masterpiece of a set. The trio has had some run-ins with the rain in a number of other festival appearances this year, but we think the EZoo crowd was lucky to experience the beauty that the rain brought to this set.

Tritonal

Being self-admitted Tritonians, we were super excited to catch this set. We had such a blast during their set that we decided to catch them for round 2 as they headlined Marquee for an after party Saturday night. Marquee is always a fantastic time. Add Tritonal to the mix and we knew we were in for an awesome party!

Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano

WHOA. This set completely defined ‘Sexy by Nature’! Sunnery and Ryan really came to party today and they had the whole crowd grooving. It’s all about the energy and these two meshed perfectly with the crowd. We had the opportunity to catch up with the guys after their set – be sure to read up on how they come to truly defining their sets.

One by one the animals retreated off the island at the end of the 2017 installment of EZoo, bringing with them many memories made on the island during the weekend, as well as some muddy shoes that would likely need some cleaning. One thing is for certain – we can’t wait until Electric Zoo opens its doors to us all again!

We’ve had the opportunity to work with Magnum PR and SiouxZ for over three years and are excited for her move to UG Strategies. We are confident that this move will only enhance her capability to grow and service both new and exiting clients to an even greater potential.

SiouxZ… We wish you nothing but the best here are Raver Magazine, we will always be, “Slave to The Rhythm.” – Michael Beas – CEO, Raver Magazine

New York, NY – (September 12, 2017): Multi-platform entertainment marketing firm UG Strategiesannounces the launch of its new Publicity & Media Relations division, to be led by music industry veteran Sioux Zimmerman. As per the acquisition of Magnum PR, Zimmerman’s New York-based publicity, events, and artist development agency, SiouxZ will serve as SVP of Publicity and Media Relations at UG Strategies, effective immediately.

CEO Parag Bhandari launched UGS in 2003 and the agency continues to serve clients in the music, film, television, fashion, technology, and consumer products industries through global experiential and digital engagement platforms. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with Sioux Zimmerman for over 10 years, and have relied on her expertise and media prowess to support countless UGS client campaigns,” says Bhandari. “We have always seen the potential of further aligning our businesses and networks. I could not be more thrilled to now partner with her officially, to build out a new division of the company, and further strengthen our service capabilities for our clients.”

Through two decades of groundbreaking online, print, and multimedia campaigns, SiouxZ has built an international roster of the most pivotal talents in pop culture including Nine Inch Nails, Portishead, Calvin Harris, DJ Shadow, Marilyn Manson, Avicii, The Prodigy, The Damned, Yoko Ono, Gang Of Four, Axwell^Ingrosso, Underworld, Orbital, Daft Punk, Moby, Richie Hawtin, Aphex Twin, Carl Cox, The Chemical Brothers, Primal Scream, The Verve, Sasha and John Digweed, Armand Van Helden, The Glitch Mob, and legendary promoter Disco Donnie Presents. Additionally, Magnum PR has been instrumental in promoting the most innovative companies in music, Moog Music and Moogfest, which showcase the intersection between technology, music, and culture. Magnum PR clients will now be served via UGS, using enhanced capabilities such as event sponsorship and brand relations, digital marketing and advertising, and live broadcasting.

SiouxZ’s highly viral press campaigns have generated multi-platinum sales and Grammy Award wins. She has regularly secured pivotal placements on national TV, radio, print and social media. Magnum PR clients have been featured across an impressive array of outlets: indie blogs; prestigious outlets such as New York Times and PBS; music bibles Rolling Stone, Vice, Pitchfork, Billboard; trendsetting lifestyle and technology outlets such as Wired, Blackbook and Fast Co; Late Night TV including SNL, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon; key radio programs on Sirius, NPR, and BBC; and on streaming platforms Apple Music and Spotify.

In film, SiouxZ’s work as Music Supervisor on Darren Aronofsky’s debut feature Pi, which earned the ‘Best Director’ award at Sundance, launched Clint Mansell’s film scoring career. Following SiouxZ’s introduction, Mansell went on to be one of this generation’s most in demand cinematic composers. SiouxZ’s additional music press credits for critically-acclaimed movies include 24 Hour Party People, David Lynch’s Lost Highway,Groove, Ex Machina, and DIG!

“I am beyond excited to join the UG Strategies team and amplify the agency’s capabilities in so many areas,” SiouxZ says. “With our combined resources, we can push traditional publicity strategies beyond print, broadcast, online, and social media to a whole new level, offering innovative services uniquely tailored to each client. The launch of our new publicity and media relations division, built on UGS’ exemplary track record in bespoke marketing, sponsorship, and digital advertising, is very exciting.”

As media, technology, and consumer behaviors evolve, flexible, cross-platform strategies and teams become essential to successful initiatives. It is no longer enough to focus on one type of platform or provide one type of service. Magnum’s expertise in breaking talent across a constantly shifting media landscape, combined with UGS’ worldwide resources and multimedia experience, positions the agency to meet these trends with unparalleled access and experience for clients to always reach the right audience, in the right way, at the right time.

Founded in 2003, UGS is a creative entertainment marketing, brand relations, and publicity agency based in New York and Los Angeles. UGS serves clients in the music, film, television, fashion, technology, and consumer products industries, across multiple experiential and digital consumer engagement platforms globally, with a fierce passion for innovation. For more information, please visit: http://www.ugstrategies.com

When artists are on the move, they are on the move… TÂCHES is literally no exception to the rule. He just got done playing at Burning Man Festival, and he make a move across the Atlantic to California where he embarks on a USA journey that will kick off the launch of his label Glitter Cowboy. If thats not enough TÂCHES is releasing a new EP, ‘To Move Mountains’. We had an opportunity to listen to the new EP ahead of time and we can honestly say that is it going to blow you mind with its wickedly addicting House vibe that it projects.

Making its premiere today, TÂCHES offers out as a FREE stream ahead of its September 20th release “Unrequited Love Affair”featuring alluring vocals by longtime collaborator Arum Flowers and is his first downtempo song, (an ode to what he’s “loved and forgotten”).

Here’s a little about what TÂCHES has to say about his new label and release:

To Move Mountains will be the first release on TÂCHES’ new label Glitter Cowboy, a home for kindred spirits. “I like to wear cowboy boots and drink beer faraway from societal responsibilities. I relish being uncomfortable and getting dusty in nature. It’s when I feel most alive” he says. Adaptability, authenticity, courage, duty, loyalty, and self-reliance are qualities he seeks to embody in the label. In keeping with his “small strokes, big impact” ethos, To Move Mountains arrives in beige packaging with fine black line art that he sourced from a Czech artist online.

Whatever TÂCHES takes on next, it will be filtered through his poignantly romantic view of the world. “The word Balearic to me, there’s a feeling of euphoria attached to it. It’s a good vibe. But at the same time, there’s always an element of melancholy. It’s a sadness attached to the transient nature of living and loving people. Emotionally, I think my music tends to sit in that melancholic field. I haven’t quite reached the level of heartbreaking emotion that I hope to convey through my music yet, but I’m getting closer.”

We first heard about the plan of Pacha Bali Festival was back in 2016. On 18 August 2018, the first ever Pacha Bali Festival was held at Anantara Seminyak Bali Resort. We had a chance to cover it and from what we experienced that night, it was great one.

We arrived at 4 PM that day and Danny Wade had already played at the red circle stage. On the hotel building there were 3 giant vertical LED screens. They also had cherries made from Styrofoam, an iconic symbol of Pacha. About 30 minutes later, Dipha Barus was up on the decks.

Dipha started his performance with some serious House tracks. He ended his performance with his own song titled ‘Nothing Can Stop Us’. Slowly, the crowd filled the VIP area and GA area. After Dipha, Leroy Styles was up to deliver sunset performance. The organizers set up tents for top up tokens, F&B, and small space called Hippy Market.

We were hoping to find some Pacha official merchandise there but unfortunately the organizer didn’t prepare it any for the fans to leave with.

Leroy wrapped up his performance around 9 PM and by that time Roger Sanchez was ready to entertain the crowd. From the beginning, he played proper House tracks that suits and that set the atmosphere for an all out beach party. Everybody around us was dancing! Some fireworks also accompanied his performance, along with 8 Pacha dancers.

We took a break at Moonlight Kitchen & Bar, located at Anantara’s rooftop. The rooftop itself was also part of Pacha Bali. If the crowd wanted to relax a bit, they could grab some drinks and enjoy the music from the DJ.

After we recharged for a while, we came down to the festival area again and it was Patrix Johnson on stage. His performance kept the mood full of energy. Finally, the last performance to close the festival was Steve Angello.

Steve played his own tracks, such as Remember and Children Of The Wild. He also brought back some memories by playing tracks during his time with Swedish House Mafia. In the middle of his performance, more fireworks rained into the sky. Steve extended his set for about 30 minutes and ended his performance around 2.30 AM which kept the crowd moving to the rhythm of the night.

The party wasn’t over, though as it moved itself to Moonlight.

How best can I describe Pacha Bali?

All I can say is that this is how you throw a proper beach party. I felt that the enthusiasm from the people in Bali was also high that everyone had a blast. For us, Roger Sanchez was the highlight of the night. He really spread the spirit of Pacha through his set and it is something that I will never forget.

We really hope there will be second edition of Pacha Bali and we hope it will be bigger than the first one.